The Golden Heart
by stellakit
Summary: Luna finds herself waking up in a strange forest with no memories. What's worse, there's an army of soldiers after her life. However, she stumbles upon an elite group of men fighting to end the violence across the continent, and they offer her protection. Can she find out the truth of her past before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1

**Hi all! This is my own plot that I was inspired to write after playing the Shall We Date? games. All these characters are my own, although some of the personalities I got from the games. ****I've already written the entire story on my computer, so I'll be updating it regularly :)**

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Chapter 1

**First Impressions**

_Ugh…_

As my eyes opened, everything was blurry.

_Why does my head hurt so much…?_

Finally, my eyes adjusted to the light and I could see my surroundings. An oak towered over me and my head rested on a ground covered with roots and sticks. Holding my palm to my head, I sat up, but a rush of pain made me groan.

_Where am I…? _I thought helplessly. Then my heartbeat began to quicken and I became frightened. _WHO am I? Why can't I remember anything?_ Without any control, my eyes began to water and teardrops fell off my cheeks. I sniffed and then suddenly I saw a shadow move along the branches of the oak above me.

"H-Hello?" My voice was hoarse and sounded squeaky. I tried to squint to see the shadow in the tree easier, but it was no use. _Maybe I'm dreaming, _I thought hopefully, _if I just lie back down…_ I did so as I thought it and rested my head back onto the ground. Releasing a sigh, I closed my eyes. Before even a second passed, I heard a thump right near me and, instantly, someone gripped my wrist and pinned me down. My eyes shot open and something shined into my eyes.

"Who are you!?" A voice boomed at me.

"I-I…" I couldn't speak. I drew in a sharp breath when I realized I had a knife at my throat. I let out a shriek, "P-please! Don't hurt me!"

"_Answer my question!_" The voice growled.

I looked to see who my attacker was, but everything was so confusing I couldn't concentrate. "I-I don't…kn-know…" I managed to say

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Fierce blue eyes locked my gaze, but I had to look away, "How do you not know who you are?!"

I couldn't help it, but my eyes filled with tears again. I sniffed, "I-I can't… I d-don't…." I made eye contact with the man again, which just made my cry more, "P-please… I'm…"

"Get up!" His eyes looked elsewhere and short, black hair flew in front of me.

"Wh-what..?"

His grip tightened around my wrist and his nails shot pain into me. Swiftly, he wrenched my body up and towards his body. My heartbeat quickened but soon his knife was at my throat again.

"_Who are you_?!" He shouted again.

"P-please… I d-don't know!" I finally managed to form a sentence.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" His knife moved closer to my throat.

I was sobbing too hard now to even form a word. _Luna,_ I remembered. A took a deep breath to try and stop my sobs, "Luna…"

His hold loosened and the knife dropped from my throat. He grunted and I turned to look him in the face. His eyes were narrowed angrily and he had a cold scowl. As cruel as he looked, I couldn't help but be taken aback by the beauty of his features. His skin was flawless, perfectly framed by straggly black hair.

"Luna…" He said in barely a whisper, "Where are you from? Why are you dressed so strange?" His gaze locked mine again and my knees felt weak.

"I…" My head hurt so badly, I couldn't remember. I gazed down at my outfit, which was a white dress that looked like swan feathers. Around the middle was a bronze belt pulled tight. A golden sun pendant with a clear crystal at the center hung around my neck. Then, I maintained his gaze and replied weakly, "I don't… remember."

He rolled his eyes angrily, "You're no use to me." I cried out as he threw me back to the ground. My hands landed in a thorn bush, causing scratches to slice down my wrists. When I looked back, he was already gone.

_What a jerk!_ I thought angrily. I leaned back on my knees and looked at my hands. They were scratched and dirty, and a little blood trickled out.

"She ran into here!" I heard a voice call out, but it wasn't the same as the man who had attacked me.

I stood up, relieved. _Maybe these people can help me figure out where I am_. "Hey! Over here!" I called out, waving my hands in the air above my head.

"I see her!" Another voice shouted.

The weak smile on my face vanished instantly as an arrow launched passed me, barely missing my arm. _Oh my god. They're trying to kill me!_ I looked around frantically, trying to figure out where to go next.

I felt someone squeeze the back of my dress and I was suddenly lifted into the air.

"Eek!" I cried out.

"Why are they looking for you?" It was him again! He was glaring at me.

"Wh-who?" I blinked, confused.

He sighed irritably, "Come with me if you want to live."

"Excuse me?"

"Hold onto me!" He hissed back, "Or do you not want to live?"

"I-I…." Thoughts raced through my head, but for some reason, my arms found their way around his neck and I latched onto him tightly. One hand lifted me up by the back of my thighs.

Soon, we were flying through the treetops, jumping from branch to branch gracefully. I looked down briefly, but my heart lurched when I saw how far from the ground we were and I quickly closed my eyes. I could feel his heartbeat. It was beating rapidly. _Was he scared?_ I was too afraid to look at his face so I buried my face into his chest.

Eventually, I felt us falling through the air and a thump.

"Let go."

I opened my eyes and looked at the man who saved my life. He was staring down at me like I was some disgusting animal.

I dropped my arms and he let me fall to the ground. I slammed against the hard stone and pain shot through me. "Ouch…" I said, rubbing my backside.

"Stay away from those men." He turned his back to me and began walking away.

Fear spiked in me again, and I called out after him, "W-wait! Who are those people?"

The black haired man stopped in his place and turned around. "What is wrong with you?"

"I-I don't know where I am…"

"Figure out how to read a map."

"Please!" I cried out. _Why am I trusting this guy? _I thought suddenly, _He was going to kill me earlier! … But he did save my life… I think._

The man remained silent. "… Come with me." He said finally, extending his hand. "I'll take you to our camp."

"C-camp?" I placed my hand in his and he pulled me close to him. He pushed back my hair and leaned in towards my neck…


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's chapter 2 :) Have a good read!**

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Chapter 2

**Camp Jade**

He immediately pushed me away. I stumbled backwards and fell back onto the ground. _What is this guy's deal?_

"You aren't one of them." He said. I thought I saw him shake his hand slightly, as if ridding it of invisible dirt, but I wasn't sure.

"Who…?" I was started to get more frustrated.

"Draehkim's."

"I… what?"

"You can come to the camp now." He turned and began walking away.

I sat on the ground a little longer, trying to figure out the conversation. _I think he wants me to follow him?_ I stood up. He was walking hastily so I had to run to keep up with him. Once I found myself in stride with him, I wanted answers. "What's your name?"

"It doesn't matter." He responded gruffly.

"I would like to know the name of the man who first threatened my life… Then, saved my life," I was surprised at my own strength of my voice, "Now tell me your name."

The man walked silently for a couple minutes, so I gave up and walked silently.

"… Zephys." He murmured suddenly.

"What?" His voice caught me by surprise.

He didn't look at or speak to me again after that, throwing out all the courage I had to ask him another question. We walked silently for what seemed like hours. I was starting to get worried when it became dark. _Is he actually bringing me somewhere?_ I thought fearfully. But soon, I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw the tips of tents appear just above some hedges. Zephys pulled back a branch to climb through to the camp and I followed slowly. However, while I was distracted, staring at my surroundings, he let go of the branch when he had reached the other side, causing it to slam back into my face.

"Oww…?" I pushed the branch forward and stepped through. The camp was under-whelming. Just four tents pitched up around what looked like the remnants of a fire. Without paying attention, I slammed into Zephys's back.

"Watch where you're going!" He turned around and snarled angrily at me.

"S-sorry…" Embarrassed, I felt my cheeks flush.

"Don't be so rude to the young lady!" A voice said.

I looked over and saw a man not much older than Zephys walking towards us. His brown hair reached far past his shoulders and flowed behind him almost majestically. In his eyes, I was relieved to see kindness, which was something I hadn't received from Zephys. He stood next to us, looking at Zephys expectantly.

"Well," he said finally, "I can't remember a time you brought a woman that you met back here to camp. Aren't you going to introduce me to your lady?"

Instantly, my I felt my face grow hot. _I barely even know this man!_ "N-no… it's not—"

"I would never be interested in such a scrawny child." Zephys cut me off, showing no signs of embarrassment. He maintained his gaze with the man in front of us, not looking at me, and said, "Her name is Luna. I found her in the woods west of here."

"Oh!" The man looked at me, puzzled, "What was she doing there?"

"I—" I tried to speak up, but a sharp tone cut me off.

"She claims to have no memory." Zephys said, with a clear hint of doubt in his voice, adding a notable emphasis on the word 'claims'.

With that note, the man's gaze hardened. He looked at Zephys, who then in turn shook his head.

"No," he puffed crossly, "of course she's not a follower of Draehkim. Why would I have brought her back here?" He seemed annoyed that this man would even think that. Then, he continued, "I checked for the mark on the back of her neck."

"I see." The man's eyes looked calm again and he gave me a warm smile.

"And they were searching for her in order to kill her."

"What?" The brown haired man's eyes widened. His gaze alternated between Zephys and me. "Why would they do such a thing?"

"Who cares?" Zephys rolled his eyes, "they try to kill everyone."

"But such a lovely girl…?" His gaze locked with mine and I looked away, embarrassed by the compliment. I heard him chuckle and soon a hand slipped into mine. "Luna…" His green eyes gazed into mine, "Welcome to Camp Jade. My name is Kayif. It's a pleasure to meet you." I blushed as he brought my hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it. He must have noticed my embarrassment because he grinned sweetly at me.

_What a nice change of personality,_ I thought happily.

"She needs a place to stay for the night," Zephys grunted, "and then she'll be on her way tomorrow morning." He glared at me, sending shivers down my spine.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Kayif spoke instead, saying, "Luna can stay for as long as she desires. Clearly," he narrowed his eyes and looked at Zephys, "she needs our protection from Draehkim. Also, it is unacceptable to abandon a woman in need."

I let out a big sigh of relief as Zephys snorted in response. Maybe after a good night of sleep I'll be able to remember everything. "Thank you." I bowed to Kayif.

Zephys grunted and said, "Well, she's not sleeping in my tent." Then, he turned and stormed off, tearing open the curtain to his tent and vanishing. _Jeez, what a grouch_.

"Luna," when I heard his voice, I turned to look at Kayif, "you're welcome to sleep with me tonight."

"Wh-what?" I stammered, "I-I…"

I stopped talking as Kayif began to laugh. He threw an arm around my shoulder and said, "Nothing like that, dear Luna. You need a place to sleep tonight. I'm sure you're very confused."

I smiled at his kindness and nodded my head. "It's been a crazy day," I sighed, "I could barely remember my own name…"

"Looks like you have a serious case of amnesia," Kayif said worriedly, "but don't worry, I'm sure your memory will come back eventually." His arm dropped from my shoulder and he gestured to the largest tent at the camp. "That's where you'll sleep tonight. In the meantime, try to get comfortable. I'm sure the others will be returning sooner or later."

I was a little nervous to be meeting another residents of this camp. What if they were just like Zephys? _Or maybe they'll be like Kayif_, I thought hopefully. He was still standing beside me, so I turned to him and said, "Who is Draehkim?"

The question must have caught him by surprise and he looked at me, with an almost stunned expression. Then he looked up at the sky and said, "He's an evil man."

"Oh…" _Descriptive_, I thought to myself, resisting the urge to roll my eyes.

"He leads an army of brainwashed swordsmen."

"Brainwashed?"

"Well," Kayif let out a forced laugh, "not technically 'brainwashed'. I hear he is quite the persuasive speaker. He can get almost anyone to do what he wants, even though it may seem ridiculous. People say he plans to conquer a portion of the tribes in the area… but I think he has an even more malicious goal in mind." He crossed his arms across his chest and looked deep in thought.

I stood there silently for a moment, but I still had so many questions, so I blurted out, "Where are we?"

Kayif turned back quickly to look at me. "Oh right," he smiled, "I had already forgotten about your amnesia. You're just so charming."

Embarrassed I turned away quickly, trying to hide my red face. _He's so sweet,_ I thought, _I've never had a man flirt with me this way… I think._

"Don't be shy," Kayif said, and then added slyly, "Though it is cute…"

"P-please…" I held my hands to my face, shaking my head, "You're embarrassing me!"

Kayif laughed and changed the subject. "We've set up camp in the forest far northwest of the central nation, Corinth. We're protecting various tribes from Draehkim's forces."

"Just this small group?" I said, aghast, "You'll get pulverized by an army!" I quickly covered my mouth with my hand, ashamed of what I said, but Kayif just laughed.

"One would think that…" he began to say.

"And that one would be wrong!" a voice called out. I looked over and saw two men climb through the hedges and into the camp clearing. One had snow-white hair, but he looked only a little older than myself. As he walked closer, I noticed a long scar reaching from between his eyebrows to his right jaw. Behind him was brown haired man, just a little shorter than his white-haired companion. He also had a scar, but his was three lines along his neck not unlike claw marks. When they stood near me, they all towered above me, including Kayif.

"My lady, you are quite a sight to behold," the brown haired man took my hand and dropped to one knee, "my name is Areck." I received a flirtatious wink from him as our eyes met.

"Oh…" I blinked, my face growing hot.

"I'm Heroth," the white haired one said, grabbing Areck on the shoulder and pulling him to his feet.

Kayif spoke before I had a chance, "This is Luna. She'll be staying under our protection for a while."

"Protection?" Areck tilted his head to the side.

"It seems that Draehkim's army has a special request for her death," Kayif responded blatantly, "So she falls under our jurisdiction. Zephys saved her from Draehkim's men in the forest."

Heroth and Areck exchanged glances and smirked. Then, they both began to laugh.

"Wh-what's so funny?" I asked, trying to get some confidence.

Areck looked at me and raised his eyebrows, "Zephys is not good at first impressions."

"Or second impressions." Heroth added and both of them started laughing again.

When their laughs subsided, Areck turned and looked at me, "So, Luna," he winked, "tell me about yourself."

"Well, I—"

"Luna has lost her memory." Kayif said, grabbing onto my arm.

"Oh, jeez," Areck's cheeks flushed slightly and his eyes moved elsewhere, "I'm sorry, that was rude."

"No, no," I tried my best to smile genuinely, "you didn't know."

"So, I guess that means I can make all new memories for you, hm?" He took a step towards me, bumping me with his elbow slightly. There was a snap of a hand against skin as Kayif's palm whipped against Areck's elbow. Like a small child being chastised, Areck dipped his head and took a step back, muttering an apology under his breath.

"Luna is tired," Kayif patted my head gently, "I think it's time for her to go to bed. You two have been out for a while as well… Get some rest." He placed his hand on my shoulder briefly, and then walked towards his tent.

I looked back at Areck and Heroth and they were whispering to each other. When they saw me staring, they turned and walked separate ways to their tents.

As I walked towards the tent, my eyes began to droop. I didn't realize how tired I really was until now. I was relieved to be able to get some sleep.

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**I'll put up chapter 3 soon! Any questions, feel free to ask! :) If I'm feeling nice, maybe I'll double update...**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**New Duties**

When I walked into Kayif's tent, I lay down on a bed. The cushion relieved a portion of my stress, surrounding me with a relaxation that I thought only the puffiest of clouds could provide, and I felt so comfortable I almost fell asleep instantly. However, before I was swept off into slumber, I noticed something off.

"Uh, Kayif?" I whispered.

"Yes, Luna?" He replied, coming in through the tent's entrance.

"There's only one bed."

"It's okay I don't move around much when I sleep."

"Wh… B-but…. I—"

"Its okay Luna," Kayif chuckled, "You can sleep with your back to me."

"But…" I thought about moving to the ground, but the bed had already driven the tenseness from every part of my body, which made the idea of muscling up the strength to move to the cold floor seem impossible. I sighed and turned to face the wall of the tent, shifting as far to the end of the bed as I could.

Kayif lay down next to me, our backs just barely skimming each other. My heartbeat quickened and I felt my face flush crimson. Luckily, Kayif couldn't see. His breathing was steady, as if the circumstances didn't faze him at all, and my mind couldn't help but come up with ideas about Kayif's experience with being in the same bed as a woman.

_Is it going to be like this every night?_ I thought to myself wearily. Although the thoughts in my head swirled uncontrollably, the fatigue from a long day won out, tiredness pulling at my eyelids, and soon I was asleep.

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My eyes slowly fluttered open, the blurry atmosphere beginning to focus. Instantly, my mind was racing. _Where am I?_ I thought frantically at first, but then I remembered my situation. I was in Camp Jade, where I had been brought after being rescued in the forest by a cross man named Zephys. Remembering that I had shared my sleeping space last night, I rolled over on the bed and noticed that I was alone in the tent. _Where's Kayif?_ I sat up, while attempting to comb my hair with my fingers at the same time. _Oh god,_ I thought worriedly, _he must have seen me looking like this!_ I groaned, and then tied my hair back into a ponytail with a band from my wrist, adjusting my sun pendant at the center of my chest as the final preparation before stepping off the bed and walking over to the entrance of the tent to push back the door flap.

When I looked around, I realized the sun was almost at its zenith. _Is it noon already?_ I thought, slightly embarrassed I had slept so late. I stepped outside the tent and walked to the center of the camp, taking a seat on a log placed next to the fire pit as a bench. No one was around, so I didn't know what to do with myself. _I need to make myself useful! They're showing me so much hospitality and they barely know me! I would be dead without them…_ I scolded myself silently, not noticing the figure approaching me.

"Luna?" I heard a voice say from the behind me. I turned and saw Kayif walking towards me, smiling. "I see you've finally woken up."

"I-I'm sorry I slept so late!" I knew my cheeks were red.

"Don't worry," Kayif shrugged, "you had a tough day yesterday."

"Well," I tried to force a smile, "now I've rested, is there anything I can do to help out around here? I want to make myself useful…" I touched the belt around my waist and realized I had a small pouch filled with coins attached to it. "Please, take this!" I tried to hand it to Kayif, but he held up his hand and shook his head.

"You don't need to repay us." He chuckled with an inviting smile. "Save that for a time you need it. Just worry about getting rest." He turned to walk away.

"Please!" I called after him. "I want to help. You've shown me so much kindness… I think I should return the favor. I'll go into the woods and collect herbs and berries for food."

Kayif paused, contemplating the idea, and then said, "Very well," and added sternly afterwards, "but you cannot go unprotected into the woods again. I have to work on some battle tactics against Draehkim," as he said this, Zephys walked back into camp from behind the shrubs, "so I'll send Zephys with you."

I nodded, relieved that I could be of help to these men. I watched as Kayif walked over to Zephys and spoke with him. Quickly, I turned and looked away to make sure I wasn't caught staring.

I heard footsteps approaching and Zephys briskly walked past me with a scowl, saying, "Let's get this over with."

Sighing, I stood up to follow him, but I had to jog to keep up with his fast pace that stated clearly how irritated he was to be ordered to watch over me. As we walked in silence, I scanned the woods for bushes with berries or plants I recognized as herbs. The last thing I wanted was for us to come back to Camp Jade empty-handed, especially if Zephys is the one who had to take time out of his daily routine to go berry hunting. Finally, my eyes caught sight of something I remembered.

"Blueberries!" I squealed, joyous that I remembered what they looked like. "Look, Zephys!"

He just grunted in response, keeping his arms crossed tightly over his chest, and blew a huff of breath up towards his bangs.

I began to pick them off of the bush, plopping one in my mouth, "I've always loved these!"

Almost before I finished talking, Zephys snapped coldly. "I thought you didn't remember anything."

"W-well," I stammered, not sure of how to respond, "I guess you never forget your favorite food!" I attempted a smile, but Zephys just looked away.

"Right," he mumbled, "you forget what nation you're in and where you're from… but you remember your favorite food."

I couldn't think of a response, so I knelt silently, picking more blueberries. As my hands started to fill up, Zephys threw a cloth bag in front of me. Once I dumped the blueberries into the bag, I stood up and began walking again. I could hear Zephys's footsteps next to me, but, at this point, I was too intimidated to look at him, worried that he might bark at me again.

The silence that settled between us was only broken by the slight crunch of leaves and twigs underneath our feet. It seemed as if the birds noticed the tension between Zephys and myself, since not even they could build up the courage to manage just a tweet. My line of sight met the ground, searching for something to step on just to lay waste to the deafening silence plaguing us, like a thick pinecone or a crisp leaf.

Finally, words found my mouth, and, at last, I established a way to end the quiet. "Thanks for coming with me."

"I was ordered to." Zephys replied almost robotically, not even looking my way.

"Well, thanks anyway." I looked at him and smiled, and I saw him stiffen slightly; however, he still didn't turn to acknowledge me. I let out a long sigh and tried to think of something else I could say to him. There was still so much I didn't understand and so many questions I wanted to ask Zephys about what was going on, but he didn't seem inclined to help me fill in any blanks.

We walked for another hour, stopping occasionally when I saw herbs or berries to pick. Somehow Zephys managed to remain silent next to me the entire time, only making some sort of annoyed sound, whether it was an unnecessarily long sigh or an over-exaggerated groan. By the end, I realized I was enjoying the silences over the not-so-subtle complaints. When we finally returned to camp, Areck, Heroth and Kayif were sitting around the fire pit together, talking.

"Luna!" Areck called, smiling, "You're back!" He waved for me to come over. As I came closer, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me down to sit next to him. "How was food-gathering with grumpy?"

"Shut up, Areck." Zephys snapped.

"Make me, you little—" Areck glared at Zephys, but I interrupted him, finding a little relief in the fact that it wasn't only me that Zephys was crabby towards.

"It was fun." It wasn't a complete lie. Being able to provide some use for the people who offered me a place to stay made me happy, so I did enjoy gathering various foods. "I could make you all dinner tonight with the things I gathered."

"That's great!" Areck threw his hands into the air joyfully.

"I could use something besides burnt deer for once…" Heroth muttered under his breath.

"Shut up, Heroth," Areck punched his friend jokingly on the arm, "like you could do any better."

"Maybe I could if you'd let me." Heroth retorted.

"Now, now, boys," Kayif sounded stern, but he was almost laughing at their banter. Then, he looked at me. "Heroth and Areck caught some game today. You can use that in your meal if you'd like." When I nodded, Kayif's eyes darted between the three other men. "I would like to talk to all of you about an upcoming mission I have been planning." With that, they all stood up and walked to Kayif's tent.

Now alone, I started to prepare the meal, praying that my hands would remember how to cook. As I set the fire, my hands worked swiftly, skinning the meat, adding various spices to it. The ingredients weren't perfect, but it was all I had to work with. I didn't have many tools at my disposal either… except for a couple sticks and a knife that was near the fire pit.

I wasn't sure how much time had past, but when I was almost finished, I heard a voice say, "Wow, Luna! Smells delicious!"

When I turned around, the four men were walking towards me. I smiled and said, "It's almost done!"

"Ugh, but I'm so hungry!" Areck frowned and held a hand to his stomach.

"Just be patient!" I giggled, flicking him on the wrist gently with one of the sticks when he tried to reach for the food in front of me.

After staring at the slight red mark on his wrist from the stick, Areck flashed me a confident smile and added. "It better be good."

The rest of them sat down and watched me as I finished my cooking. After I cut out the first piece, I turned around and all of them had laid a cloth on their lap as a plate, looking at me expectantly.

"Wow," I said teasingly, "you guys really are hungry." I quickly cut pieces for all of them and handed it to them. Then, I went around and placed assorted berries in their laps as well. "Eat up!" As I watched them take their first bites, I got nervous. _What if it tasted awful?_ I thought worriedly, holding my breath as I watched Areck swallow his first bite.

"This is amazing!" He cried out.

"Luna, I'm very impressed." Kayif said, nodding his head to me.

"You're very talented." Heroth added.

Zephys remained silent, taking small bites.

"St-stop it guys!" I smiled and I felt my cheeks flush, "You're praise is embarrassing me." I resisted the urge to let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Well, you deserve it!" Areck flashed me a grin and Kayif and Heroth nodded in agreement.

As I sat watching them eat, Kayif finally said, "Why don't you have something to eat, Luna?"

"Oh, no," I said, "I can wait until you all finish."

"Luna," Kayif smiled warmly at me, "you've done enough today."

"Yeah!" Areck chimed in. "Just eat something!"

I nodded and cut myself a small piece. As I ate, the others continued a conversation. I felt content sitting here with these men, grateful that I had found some place to belong for now.

Once nightfall came, it was time to sleep again and all of them headed off to their respective tents.

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**You can expect another update later today. You all deserve a little action at this point... not just cooking and berry picking...**


	4. Chapter 4

**As promised: the second update today. **

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Chapter 4

**Uninvited Guests**

A couple of weeks had passed since I had come to Camp Jade with Zephys. The daily routine settled in. I always prepared dinner from them and, twice a week, someone would go out and gather supplies with me. Not much memory had returned during my time here, except for a few recipes and hospitality habits that I must have learned in my past. Occasionally, three of them would go on a mission, leaving one behind to stay with me at Camp Jade. I still felt like I was burdening them with my presence, but they always assured me that I wasn't. That is, except for Zephys.

It was a day like any other. I had just returned with Zephys from a painfully long trip into the woods to find something to eat. He sat soundless on the log next nearby as I sorted the plants in front of me.

"It so beautiful out today," I said, trying to break the awkward silence that always seemed to loom around us when we were together, "I love the spring."

"Spring just brings bad fevers." Zephys mumbled, staring at the lifeless fire pit.

"What season do you like?" I didn't look up at him in order to seem nonchalant. I always felt tense around him, but, recently, I had mastered the façade of serenity.

Zephys was quiet for a moment, pondering my question. Then, with an emotionless face, he responded, "I like winter."

Surprised, I lifted my head to look at him. "Why?" Truthfully, I hadn't expected him to even answer my question. He had told me many times that I asked pointless questions, most of which didn't even merit a response from him.

He shrugged, then propped his chin on his hand, "I like how sleepy it is. How quietly the snow falls from the sky… How any color stands out against the snow."

I couldn't hide my astonishment. _Where did this poetry come from?_ I almost laughed, but I knew that would be rude, but, given our usual circumstances, I didn't think my reaction was too out of line. Maybe he was finally accepting that I wasn't leaving Camp Jade any time soon.

"Don't look so appalled," Zephys glared at me. He looked more offended than angry, his cheeks beginning to turn a little pink, but I remained silent in an effort to keep my mouth from falling open wide. "Say something." Fidgeting slightly, he kicked at the dirt by the fire.

Just as I was about to respond, I was cut short by another voice.

"Aye, Luna!" I turned and saw Areck walking into camp with Heroth by his side, as always. "We're back! You don't need to miss me anymore!"

I rolled my eyes playfully and Areck scooped me up in an embrace. Heroth patted me on the head and sat down next to Zephys.

"Okay, Areck," I smiled and pushed myself away from him, "that's enough."

I heard Heroth snicker to himself and Areck shot him a fierce look. I turned to get back to dealing with the bag of supplies and Areck found a seat on the ground near me. He sighed and lay back, putting his hands behind his head as a makeshift pillow.

"I love this weather." Areck sighed.

I looked up to see Zephys's reaction. His eyes shot up to stare at Areck, almost in a glower. I giggled slightly to myself, causing Zephys to glance my way. When he noticed I was looking at him, he quickly turned away, staring at his hands.

"Hey, Luna." Heroth said, "How long have you been back?"

"Not too long." I shrugged, eyeing the position of the sun to get an estimate. "Definitely less than an hour."

Areck leaned up from his lounging on the ground, his gaze shifting from me to Zephys, who was now looking off at something I couldn't see. "Zephys, how was your behavior toda—?"

"Shh!" Zephys stood up abruptly.

"What's wr—" I tried to say.

"SHH!"

Everyone remained silent for a few seconds. Then, hastily, Zephys leapt across the pit and pinned me to the ground.

"What are you—?" I gasped as an arrow flew right above my eyes.

Heroth and Areck sprang to their feet, each whipping out their respective weapons. From the ground I could hear footsteps and voices calling.

"I can see her!" I heard one say.

"Kill them all!" A louder voice called, "They don't need her alive!"

I drew my breath in sharply. _Who are these people?_ With the help of Zephys, I got to my feet and ran to hide behind one of the tents. As I ran past, Kayif came running out.

"Luna!" He looked at me, "You've got to get out of here!"

"But—"

Before I responded, Kayif pulled out both his katanas and charged into the battle. All four of them were fighting, their swords moving faster than my eyes could keep up.

Suddenly, I felt someone grip my wrist and pull me against them. Then, there was a knife at my throat.

"You're much more beautiful than I had expected," the breath of my captor blew against my ear, making me tense up, "it's too bad I have to destroy this flawless face."

"Pl-please…" I begged, my eyes beginning to water, "Don't…"

"Sorry, Luna, but your time here is— Ahh…!" His mouth released a sigh and the knife dropped from my throat. I quickly moved away, turning to look at the body. He had a blade stabbed in the side of his stomach. Above him stood Zephys.

"We've got to get out of here." He reached out his hand.

"But what about the others?" I looked back at the camp, but I felt Zephys's hand grip my wrist tightly.

"Luna," his blue gaze pierced me, "we have to go."

I bit my lip and hesitantly glanced back again at the camp. Then, he yanked my wrist and I stumbled towards him. He scooped my legs up with one arm and supported my back with the other. He took off, running through the woods with me in his arms. I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his chest, trying to drown out the sound of battle behind me. The image of my attacker's dead body was still fresh in my mind, blood pouring from the puncture in his abdomen, and I tried to shake it out.

After a while of running, I opened my eyes and looked up at Zephys's face. He had a stern look, scanning around for any enemies. His pace slowed as we reached the end of the forest. Before us was a small city. He carefully placed me on my feet and I released him from my hold so that we could walk together towards the town.

"We should be safe here for a while," he said quietly, "We can blend into the town."

I nodded but didn't respond. I couldn't help but think about Kayif and the others. What if they had died fighting to protect me?

"Thank you," was all I could get out, "for saving my life… again."

"I would rather be fighting with my brothers in arms." He responded coolly. "I'm here on orders."

I couldn't help but let my shoulders droop. "I'm sorry."

Zephys grunted but didn't say anything else. Side by side, we traveled between two buildings and walked out into what looked like the center of town.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"This is Blackdell City." He responded. "Do you recognize the name?"

"No…" I sighed, hoping that it would trigger a memory.

"Well," he shrugged, "let's find a place to stay for the night."

We wandered the city streets together for a while, looking for the sign of an inn. I watched as people continued their daily routines, completely unaware of the day we had. I tried to act normal and put on a calm face, but it was hard, considering how unsure of the outcome I was.

A sign on one of the passing buildings caught my eye. "Look, Zephys!" I tapped his shoulder and pointed. "The Sleepy Bear Inn." I reached for the money pouch attached to my belt. I wasn't sure how much was in it, but I placed it into Zephys's hand. "Hopefully this is enough."

He opened the bag and looked inside. To my surprise, his eyes widened in amazement, and then he quickly closed it. Afterwards, he looked at me. "Where did you get all this money?"

"I…" All I could do was shrug. "I had it with me when you found me in the woods."

Zephys blinked and gripped the bag tightly as we walked into the inn. A woman was standing behind the desk and smiled as the door shut behind us.

"Good evening," she said sweetly, "can I get you two a room?"

"Two." Zephys responded immediately.

"I-I'm sorry," she looked surprised, "but we only have one room available."

Zephys groaned and threw two coins on the counter. "We'll take it." He snatched the key out of her hand and walked briskly up the steps to our room. I hurried after him, jogging to keep up. He opened the door to the room and we walked in. When he slammed the door unnecessarily forcefully, I couldn't help but flinch from the sound.

It wasn't a very big room. I sighed when I realized it only had one bed. I knew I would probably end up sleeping on the floor. When I looked at Zephys, I noticed that he seemed uncomfortable as well.

"We both need good rest." He muttered. "We will have to share the bed."

My face turned red. Although I shared a bed with Kayif for two nights, I spent my second day finding materials for my own bed, which I slept on for the rest of my days there. I felt awkward enough with Kayif, who was very kind to me, and I didn't want to think about how weird it would be with Zephys. Trying my best to remain calm, I lay down first and faced Zephys, who was standing off to the side of the room. He had his back turned to me and was taking off his extra equipment. He stripped down to his black undershirt and, before he turned back towards me, I flipped around to stare the wall. I felt the bed compress as he settled next to me. His breathing matched the pace of my own: fast and nervous.

"Do you think they're okay?" I asked, feeling my eyes fill up with tears.

"There were many men attacking us." I could tell from his voice that he was frowning.

Worry filled my mind and I couldn't fall asleep after that. I don't know what I would do if they all died in that fight. It was all my fault. I turned so I was on my back and stared at the ceiling. The more I thought, the sadder I became. Tears began streaming down my cheeks and I sniffed, trying to make them stop. But they didn't. Soon, I was crying uncontrollably, loud gasps of breath escaping my mouth occasionally while I tried my best to suppress the sound.

I heard Zephys rustle and he turned his face towards me. His eyes were still closed but he reached his arms around me and pulled me close to him.

"Stop crying," he mumbled sleepily, "there's nothing you can do now."

I felt a strange feeling of safety in his arms and my sobs slowly stopped. Zephys's breathing slowed, each breath pushing my hair slightly. For some reason, I found this calming and, before I knew it, I drifted off to sleep as well.

* * *

**Let the adventure begin :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**Infamous**

_"You have such a heart of gold, child…" I heard a voice say. I looked around rapidly, searching for the source of the sound, and, eventually, I located a man speaking with a little girl. He looked like her father. I tried to call out to them, but no noise came out of my throat, as if something was blocking the passageway._

_ "What does that mean, papa?" the little girl asked, holding onto his hand._

_ "It means that you are very special," he whispered encouragingly. "That you have something that no one else does." _

_ Suddenly, a storm began to brew and rain poured relentlessly. The wind picked up speed and debris began flying everywhere, blocking my view. I could hear the girl shouting for her father but the wind was whistling too loud in my ears to be able to distinguish any words she was saying. I covered my face to protect it from the sticks that flew by in the gusts and, as I turned, I noticed the wind had torn up a tree by its roots behind me, sending it tumbling down towards me…_

My eyes shot open and, for a second, I was confused. _Am I back at Camp Jade?_ I thought, but then I felt a blow of air against the back of my neck. My face flushed in embarrassment, realizing again how Zephys and I had slept last night. After a couple more seconds of expected awkwardness, I calmed myself down, and my thoughts drifted elsewhere.

_What was that dream about?_

Carefully, I sat up in the bed, so not to disturb Zephys's slumber. The arm that had been wrapped around my stomach fell into my lap with a painfully loud _thud_. Scared that may have woken him up, I quickly glanced over at him, relieved when I saw his eyes were closed peacefully. Then, I found that I couldn't stop staring at his face as he slept. It wasn't as hard and cold as it was when he was awake. He looked like an innocent child…

I sighed, shaking my head to stop the strange thoughts, and lay down on my back again.

"Mmm… stop moving…" Zephys's groggy mumble sent a ripple of worry through me. I could never predict his actions, which made any situation an uneasy one.

I turned my head to face him and watched as his eyelids slowly fluttered open. When he looked at me, his eyes widened and he immediately pulled his arms away from my waist, almost sending himself tumbling off the bed and onto the floor. Before his face turned away from me, I saw his cheeks turn a touch pink.

After his gauche reaction, my face warmed and I knew I was blushing as well. In order to break the silence that plagued us so often, I said, "Good morning, Zephys."

"We need to keep moving," he responded, agitated. "They'll probably be able to track us here if we stay too long."

I blinked and nodded, more than a little relieved that he had blatantly avoided a conversation about the previous occurrence.

Zephys slipped on his protective vest, strapping on hilts for his katana and his knife. He threw his cape around himself then turned to face me. "Are you ready to go?"

I stood up and looked at myself in the mirror. It wasn't the prettiest sight, but there wasn't much I could do about it at this point. I combed my hair and tied half of it back into a ponytail, and then I grabbed my belt and strapped it around my stomach, latching on the money pouch as well. Lastly, I slid the pendant of my necklace to the middle of my chest. When I turned to walk towards Zephys, he had an irritated look on his face.

"Let's go," he muttered.

We both walked out of the room together and back out onto the city streets. The sun wasn't very high in the sky, just an hour or so past dawn. Everyone was already out and about on the streets.

Zephys moved briskly through the streets, weaving in and out of people with ease. I kept bumping into them, however, so I began to lag behind him. In an effort to keep up with him, I reached out and grabbed on to the top of his arm. He didn't show any reaction to it, so I held on, taking his lack of response as affirmation to keep doing so.

As we continued, I started to notice some strange stares from the public as we walked by them, many people taking double looks with narrowed eyes.

"Uh… Zephys?" I whispered.

"What?" He responded irritably.

"Everyone is looking at us strangely." I gestured to the glare from a mother who passed by with her children, feeling a little hurt when I saw her pull them closer to her body protectively.

Zephys quickened his pace and soon we reached a tree that stood in the middle of the square. As we neared, I noticed a few papers attached to the bark. Then, Zephys's body stiffened.

"Oh my god." I drew my breath in sharply when I saw a picture of myself nailed to the tree. _Wanted for treason by Draehkim's Army: Luna Aurelia. Reward: Riches to last you a lifetime_. "Aurelia…" I murmured, recognizing the name as my own.

"Wear my cape." Zephys placed his cape around my shoulders and flipped the hood up over my head a little more forcefully than necessary. "We need to hide your face… Hurry."

I was much shorter than Zephys so his cape dragged on the ground behind me as I chased after him. Once we reached the edge of the city, I noticed a long dirt road that led into the mountains in front of us.

When I looked at Zephys, he was clutching the wanted poster tightly in his hand, his knuckles turning a foreboding white. The city began to grow distant from us but, suddenly, Zephys grabbed me fiercely by the shoulder and pinned me against a nearby tree.

"Zephys…!" I gasped at the vicious actions, which were made worse by the pain that came from slamming against the bark of the tree. "What are you—?"

Still holding me with one arm, he held up the wanted poster. "Luna…" he growled, staring into my eyes. "What the hell is this?"

"I-I don't know!" I squeaked, unable to maintain eye contact with his severe blue gaze.

"Why are you wanted by Draehkim?!" He shouted ferociously at me, causing my body to begin shaking.

"I-I…" Tears stung at the corners of my eyes. "Zephys… I can't r-remember… please…"

"It says you committed treason! That's a serious crime!"

"I-I don't know! I can't remember a-anything."

"STOP LYING TO ME!" He pushed me harder against the tree. "You have to know something!"

"Zephys…!" I pleaded.

Sighing, he released me and turned to walk down the path again. "If I weren't on direct orders to protect you…" he grumbled, not finishing his sentence.

I blinked, shocked, and inhaled deeply to recover from the airtight hold Zephys previously had on me. I was struggling to comprehend the drastic difference between his actions now and last night.

"All you've done is create unnecessary problems. Because of you some great men may be dead."

His words felt like they grabbed my heart and crushed it as hard as they could. "Why are you so cruel, Zephys?" I whispered, wiping the tears that fell from my eyes. "I thought… last night…" _Maybe you had begun to open up to me_. I finished the sentence in my head.

Zephys frowned and looked towards the mountain. "I needed a good night's sleep so that I can follow my orders and protect you," his eyes hardened as he spoke. "If you continued crying, I never would have fallen asleep."

I stopped walking and stood silently, not wanting to continue with him. After a couple more steps, he turned and looked at me.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't want to go with you," I said angrily.

"Don't be a stupid child," he rolled his eyes irritably. "You will not survive without me. They'll find you within a day."

As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. However, I remained still.

"Stop wasting my time." Zephys turned and began walking towards me again. His stomping suddenly made me become frightened and I flinched as he gripped my wrist. "Kayif, Heroth, and Areck may have given their lives to save you. And to repay them, you're being an immature little…" He inhaled deeply and let go of my wrist. He raised a hand to his temple and rubbed it.

I tried to maintain my composure, but his words clawed at my heart. Finally, I took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry… Zephys."

He let out a sigh and closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry," I repeated.

"I heard you." His frown became less severe, and I felt the tension of the situation loosen.

"I-I'm sorry," I said hastily. "I'm just really s—"

"Stop." Zephys began to walk down the path. "Let's just… go."

* * *

**Read and review!**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Not So Safe**

Zephys and I hadn't spoken another word since his outburst. He seemed calm now, but my heart was still pounding wildly. Zephys had always been a naturally cold person; however, I had never seen him explode like that before. I searched for the correct words that could mend the tear that was generated from out fight but nothing came to my mind.

Staring at the back of his head, I pondered what was going on inside his mind. The black cape he had given me still draped on my shoulders, but I had taken off the hood.

"We will be arriving at the City of Kadri soon." Zephys's voice took me by surprise, causing me to jump. "It is just beyond this last hill… we should buy supplies to last us in the woods for a few days."

_The woods?_ I thought to myself, _what happened to staying in inns?_

"We have to avoid cities as much as possible," he said, as if reading my mind. "We need to avoid places where people may have seen the… posters."

I nodded and changed the subject to avoid any tensions. "How do you know the land so well, Zephys?"

"It was part of my training." He squinted his eyes as if looking at something far away. As I traced his sight line, I noticed three men walking towards us. Suddenly, he stepped in front of me. "Stay behind me."

As the three men neared, I frightfully realized they were, without a doubt, bandits. They smiled once they were closed to us.

"Look here, Dirk," one said, flashing a smile with missing teeth. "What a lovely couple."

"What a lovely girl…" another cooed, staring straight at me. His eyes flashed to Zephys quickly, and he said, "I'll be taking her off your hands…"

I felt Zephys's arm reach around me and watched the other pulled out his katana.

"The things I would do with her…" the first one said, licking his lips.

Zephys stiffened and the hand holding me back clenched into a fist.

"Let's get this pretty boy out of the way first," the last one growled.

The three of them all rushed at Zephys at once. Moving swiftly, he sidestepped one bandit and ducked into the shins of another, tripping him. Finally, his sword met with the blade of the third man. Zephys's eyes fixed on him and he delivered a powerful kick into the man's crotch. The bandit fell back, writhing in pain, and Zephys spun around to face his next opponent. A bandit came running back towards him, but Zephys easily deflected his sword and whipped a slice along his chest, causing the bandit to stumble backwards and fall to the ground. The final bandit stood still, and then looked at his two comrades on the ground. With a gulp, he turned and ran off.

Zephys twirled his katana in his hand and reached it into the air over the bandit that he had kicked to the ground.

"No… Please!" the bandit cried.

I looked away when I heard the bandit plead for his life. A shiver ripped through my body when I heard the disturbing sound of a sword driving through a chest bone. I remained still, holding myself with my arms. I could hear Zephys's footsteps approaching and he placed his hand around my waist, briskly leading me away from the bodies.

We walked in silence for a while, but then I said, "You're an incredible swordsman."

"I was trained by the greatest teacher out there," he said softly, and then added, "Lord Kayif has contributed much to my knowledge as well."

We reached the top of the hill and the City of Kadri sprawled out in front of us. The view was stunning, and the wind whipped my dress against my legs and blew Zephys's cape into the air. I held out my arms to feel the breeze, a comforting feeling of lightness surrounding my body.

When I turned to Zephys, he was staring at me with a look I couldn't read. He immediately looked away after our eyes met.

"L-Let's find a general store," he said with just the slightest stutter, beginning the walk down the hill.

I followed after him, trying not to slip on the rocky slope. "Thank you for protecting me back th— woah!" My foot stepped on a loose rock that moved under my weight, and I felt myself starting to fall, the previous feeling of lightness now replaced by an obvious weight pulling my body down.

A strong hand gripped my wrist and pulled me back up. When I recovered, my heart was pounding from the rush of fear, and Zephys was looking at me sternly and frowning.

"Thanks…" I feigned a smile. "Again."

Sighing, Zephys wrapped his arm around my back and lifted up my legs with the other. "This seems to be the safest way of traveling with you."

My face turned red and I tried to come up with excuses. "I-If you didn't walk so fast, I would have more time to worry about other things."

As I babbled, the black haired man carrying me seemed to relax slightly, his countenance softening ever so slightly. He began moving down the hill slowly as he said, "Things like staying on your feet?"

I giggled and noticed a grin twitch at the side of his mouth. I put my hand over my mouth and exclaimed, "Oh! You just smiled!"

"What?" Zephys's eyes narrowed, and the moment was gone before I could blink.

"You just smiled! I saw it!" I smiled at him. "I don't think I've ever seen you smile."

Zephys looked back at the path ahead and exhaled. "You're strange, Luna."

I opened my mouth to retort, but closed it quickly. He was carrying me, after all. I should be courteous. I nuzzled my face in against his shoulder and then looked up at him. He stared straight at the road ahead until his eyes looked down briefly.

"Why are you staring at me?" He asked, looking back at the path

"Oh," I looked down, my face getting warm. "I was just thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"I…" I wasn't sure myself. "I'm grateful for your kindness."

"I'm just following orders," Zephys replied immediately and almost robotically.

"I know," I continued to smile up at him, expecting that response. "I still appreciate it."

Zephys's face relaxed again. His expression wasn't as stern as it had been since our fight. "We'll get a tent in town. With the money you have, we should be able to afford sleeping mats for both of us and some materials you need for cooking."

I nodded and, soon, felt the terrain level out. We had reached the bottom of the hill. Zephys placed me on the ground and I walked next to him into the city. I flipped up the hood of the cape again, looking carefully for any more wanted posters. I tried to reach back into my mind and think of a reason for them, but all that came was blank memories.

Zephys led us into a large store triple the size of some other buildings. Inside, products stacked in piles and lined the walls. I couldn't help but be amazed by the amount of stuff that was there.

"You can look around while I buy what we need." Zephys looked at me. He seemed amused by my amazement, one corner of his lips twisting upwards by a miniscule amount.

"Okay!" I flashed him a smile and walked along the wall, gazing at the expanse of merchandise. There was almost anything one could think of there, from food to furniture to games. I found myself attracted to the aisle filled with hairpins. Silver and gold pins glistened on the shelves and I was so happy just to be looking at them.

_Zephys would probably find all this stupid,_ I thought to myself as I picked up a hairpin and examined it closer. Small green jewels complimented the gold color.

"Excuse me?"

I heard a voice behind me. When I turned around, an old woman was staring at me.

"Um," I blinked, not recognizing this woman. "Hi."

"My, my," she smiled sweetly at me. "You are quite beautiful."

"Oh, um, thanks." In an attempt to be polite, I directed my gaze on something behind the elderly woman and tried to walk away without suspicion.

"Would you like to buy some of my flowers?" The woman gripped my wrist with a gloved hand, not allowing me to leave.

"I, uh, no." I forced an uncomfortable smile. "No, thank you. I don't have any money with me."

"Is that so…?" the woman sighed, and then pulled out a beautiful bouquet of flowers, which were light and dark shades of purple. "Since you are so pretty, I will give them to you for free."

I held a hand to my cheek. "They're so beautiful…" As I reached out to take them from her grasp, another large hand pulled my arm back. Surprised by the force, I whipped around to see Zephys behind me.

"Luna," he whispered. "Let's go."

"But—"

"_Let's go._" He said forcefully and led me out of the store.

I looked back at the old woman and she had a furious look on her face. "You've made her angry," I said sternly. "She was being so kind to me. It's nice every once in a while."

"Do you know her?" Zephys questioned me once we had stepped back onto the street. He held a bag of supplies over his shoulder.

"I… no… I didn't…"

"Those were a rare kind of flower I've only ever read about…"

"Really!" I looked back at the store. "How kind of her to give them to me…"

"They're called Nightbanes," he muttered while quickening his pace. "And they're deathly poisonous."

My mouth fell open. "What?!" I couldn't believe what he was saying.

"Even skin contact can result in a fast, but excruciating, death…" His eyes were moving about the town wildly, presumably searching for an escape route. "She was trying to kill you." Before I could respond, he pointed off to the array of trees. "This way. Hurry." We ran out and into the woods next to the city.

My heart was beating rapidly. I was struggling to accept what had just taken place as true. _Why are all these people trying to kill me?_ I thought desperately, _why can't I remember anything?!_ My eyes watered as we trekked through the woods, and I tried to blink them away. Unfortunately, my vision blurred from the tears, making it difficult to see where I was going, and a root caught my foot.

Next thing I knew, I was tumbling to the ground, slamming myself hard against the various surroundings; my forehead scraped against the bark of the tree as I fell, pain shot through my wrist, and I felt a warm liquid fall into my eyes. When I wiped my brow, there was blood on my hand. Instantly, I felt dizzy.

"Z… Zephys…" I moaned in pain. Searing pain made even an attempt to stand unbearable, and I fell back to the dirt roughly. My head spun and my eyelids began to droop as I watched the blurry figure of Zephys slow his run.

"Luna…!"


	7. Chapter 7

**One of my favorite chapters is coming up soon... THE chapter?**

* * *

Chapter 7

**A Special Nurse**

_The sun peeked in through the entrance of the cave. The walls dripped from the slight moisture of the misty rainfall. A young woman knelt by a man, his head lying peacefully in her lap. She had a look of pain on her face. Not from aching, but from sadness. A single tear fell from her cheek and landed on the face of the man she was holding. _

_When he noticed, he reached up to touch her face gently. He forced a smile onto his face, and his other hand held weakly onto a wound in his side, which had spread blood down his clothing. _

"_Stop crying," his weak voice murmured, "it doesn't hurt very much."_

"_Please, father," a woman's voice sobbed, "don't waste your energy…"She reached her hand up to grab the man's hand from her cheek. She gripped it tightly and closed her eyes. _

"_There's nothing you can do."_

"_I'll bridge the worlds to bring you back." Tears were choking up the woman's voice. She was fighting them back the best she could, trying her best to be strong for her father. "I swear. I don't know what I'll do without you." _

"_No," the man said soothingly, "please let myself, and the world, be at peace. You know the cost of trying to find me again. Let me be with your mother."_

_The woman inhaled sharply, and the floodgates she'd built burst, letting tears stream from her eyes and down her cheeks. "I'll miss you every day." She leaned over and kissed his forehead. "I love you, father."_

"_I love you, too…"_

* * *

Something cool touched my forehead and, slowly, my eyes opened.

"Mmm…" I sighed, adjusting to the light. "Zeph…"

Immediately, a figure was before my eyes.

"Luna!" Zephys reached his hand to my head and pushed back some of my hair. "You're awake."

I looked down at my arm, which was wrapped in a sling that reached around my neck, and I could feel a bandage wrapped around my skull. When I tried to sit up, I felt a hand push with a gentle, but strong, force against my shoulder and lay me back down on the bed.

"Don't move," Zephys said worriedly. "You hit your head pretty hard."

"Wh… where am I…?" I mumbled, still dazed from my injuries.

"You fell in the woods and hurt yourself a couple days ago," he said, frowning. "I set up camp in a small clearing deep in the woods." He rubbed the side of my arm delicately, something that felt strange coming from him. "Just relax and worry about getting better."

"What… what if someone…"

"Don't worry," Zephys reassured me. "I'll protect you. Drink some water." He held a small cup to my mouth and poured in a small sip. The water ran down my throat, cooling off the uncomfortable, dry sensation that came from a parched mouth, and I sighed happily. "You can go back to sleep if you'd like."

I nodded and leaned my head back. For some reason, as Zephys stood up to walk out the tent's entrance, I felt myself reach out and grasp his wrist his wrist frantically. "Please… stay here," I murmured. With my eyes barely opened, I watched as Zephys sat back down next to my bed, and, comforted by his presence, I fell back asleep.

* * *

"Luna."

My eyes opened, and I saw Zephys sitting by my bedside, holding a bowl.

"You need to eat something. You've been in bed for almost a week."

I tried to sit up, but I flinched from the pain. Zephys's hand supported my back and helped me up. He handed me the bowl, which was full of what looked like discolored soup. I took a small sip.

_YUCK! _I almost said it out loud, but thankfully I was able to stifle the shout of distaste. The spices were mixed horribly and it tasted like dirt. I tried not to show it on my face, but Zephys noticed.

"I'm sorry," he said, cheeks turning pink. "I'm not much of a cook."

"No." I smiled at him. Now was not the time to be picky about food. "It's great. Thank you."

Zephys grunted and cast his eyes away. I could tell just from his actions that he was uncomfortable with my praise.

"I'm sorry," I sighed after a short silence.

"What?" He looked back at me, confused. "Why are you sorry?"

"For causing this problem." I used my good arm to gesture to myself as a whole, a pained smile on my lips.

Zephys stiffened, and turned away. "Don't be ridiculous."

"I guess I'm just a klutz," I laughed meekly.

Instead of responding, Zephys just turned back to me and held out his hand, "You need to try standing to get some exercise. Don't worry," he added when he saw my face, "I'll support you. Just lean on me." He wrapped his arm around my waist and helped me up.

My head pounded furiously at the feeling of his arm around my body. Whether it was from his touch or the pain of my injuries, when I rose, my knees buckled underneath me almost immediately. Luckily, Zephys was there to keep me standing.

"We need to figure out why there are people after you," he muttered in a tone that I thought sounded angry.

"Yeah… I guess that would be kind of nice." I forced a laugh and began to stride separately from Zephys. Slowly, _very _slowly, I walked outside the tent and into the clearing. The sun made me squint and enhanced my headache slightly, but it was nice to feel its warmth again. I turned to face Zephys, who quickly looked away. My eyes widened, nervous that there was something wrong. "What are you looking at?"

"Nothing."

"I saw you looking at me."

"Th-the sun," Zephys stammered. "it… compliments your, ah, face… quite well." His face turned bright red, and he looked at the ground, kicking a loose pebble off to the side like a small child.

His words were so shocking I struggled to find a response to them, and the pounding of my heart in my ears didn't help me at all. "Th-Thank you, Zephys." I tried to mask it, but my heart fluttered. _What was that? _I thought, looking down at myself, _Kayif had complimented me many times at Camp Jade… But I had never reacted this way before_. I felt my cheeks flush red, so I turned to the side slightly, hoping that would help mask it. "Where are we headed after this?"

"I'm not sure," he said truthfully.

"Oh," I said, kind of let down. _Am I going to live the rest of my life on the run from these men I've never seen? _I couldn't help but frown. _I can't be happy constantly living in fear that someone will try to kill me…_

"I'm going to hunt for food." Zephys said gruffly. He turned and threw a knife at the ground in front of me. "Use this to protect yourself while I'm gone. No one should find us, but it's good to be cautious. Especially with your luck." With those words of advice, he walked out of camp and into the woods.

After I picked up the knife, I stood silently for a few minutes, absorbing the sun's rays some more. I looked around, holding my sun pendant tightly in my uninjured hand. Vines danced along the surface of boulders that lined one side of the clearing. There was very little color besides various greens, browns, and grays. A slight breeze caused leaves high up in trees to wave back and forth.

The shriek of a hawk pierced the silence and I watched as it circled overhead. I squinted when I realized that it seemed to be flying right above me. Slowly, I backed towards the tent and, suddenly, the hawk dove down towards me.

"Oh, no." I couldn't run. Not in the physical state I was in.

The hawk continued its pursuit of me, and my heartbeat quickened to a rapid pace, frightened. Where is Zephys?

In the end, the hawk simply landed just a few feet in front of me. I looked closer and realized that a note was latched on to its claw. I stepped forward, bent down, and reached my hand out to grab the paper. The hawk didn't resist, so I snatched it off. As I opened it, I read:

_Luna!_

_ Don't worry about us anymore. Thanks to Kayif's stealth, we were able to escape the forces of Draehkim's men. You can't get rid of us that easy, Luna. We've also uncovered some information regarding your past. Tell Zephys that he can find us at the Orhaven and to get here as soon as possible. _

_ I hope you think about me as much as I think about you. I miss seeing your beautiful smile._

_ Heroth says hello._

Love, Areck

Relief flowed through me. I couldn't contain the joy I felt. They were alive! I smiled at the letter, folded it up, and slipped it into my dress.

Unsure of what to do with myself now, I decided to head for the tent to start preparing some spices from the bag of supplies Zephys had bought. As I opened the bag, I realized it was going to be difficult to cook with one hand. Sighing, I leaned back onto my bed. I was frustrated I couldn't be helpful, but I also felt a twinge of embarrassment that I had been so terrified of a little hawk.

While I passed the time, I took out the letter from my dress and reread it multiple times, blissful that my friends were alive. I anxiously awaited Zephys's return so I could share the good news about the letter with him. It was a huge weight off both of our shoulders.

After a few more hours, I heard some footsteps from outside the tent.

"Zephys?" I called.

Soon, the curtains were pulled back, and Zephys stepped in. Sweat dripped from his forehead, but he failed to look tired at all.

"Zephys!" I smiled brightly. "They're alive!"

"What?" He looked at me, confused.

"Kayif and the others!" I threw my good arm around his neck happily.

His body froze from its contact with mine, but Zephys's face still remained the same. "How do you know?"

"Areck sent a letter." I took it out from my dress and handed it to Zephys. "Look."

As he read the letter, he eyes softened. However, his frown deepened when he reached the end. He bent the letter carefully and tucked it into his belt. Afterwards, he folded his arms across his chest, looking concerned.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"They are quite a long distance from here. We've been traveling in the opposite direction of the base by the sea." He reached out and ran his thumb along my head. "It'll be hard to travel in this state."

"I can do it," I assured him. "If we take it slow. Plus," I added in, smiling up at Zephys, "you have orders to protect me, so I'm sure you wouldn't want to let Kayif down."

Zephys nodded seriously, and his eyes met mine. "Let's get some sleep. We'll head out at dawn when it's cool." He walked over to his bed and lay down in it.

I sat down on my bed too, wrapping Zephys's cape around me tightly. My mind wandered, excited about seeing Kayif, Areck, and Heroth again. I was restless to learn what Kayif had found out about my past, yet, at the same time, I was worried. _What if it is something terrible?_ I thought, frightened, _What if they turn their backs to me?_ The thoughts kept me up for a large part of the night.

I could hear Zephys's deep breathing, telling me that he had already fallen into a deep sleep. Sighing, I sat up, flinching slightly at the pain from my injuries. I slowly stood up and walked out of the tent. The light of the moon shined rays on the moss, causing them to glisten. The cool air blew my hair back slightly, and I tightened Zephys's cape over my arms to keep me warm.

I thought back to the dream I had while I was recovering. I had almost forgotten most of it by now, but I still could see the blood that caked the man's abdomen. _What did it mean?_ I thought, wondering. However, I shrugged. _It's just a dream_, I thought reassuringly, _it probably didn't mean anything. But why does it feel so strange?_


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Two Faces**

We set out after Zephys finished packing up the campsite. I felt bad making Zephys carry all the supplies, but there wasn't much I could do to help. He still was able to walk faster than I could, though.

"Keep up, Luna." I could tell Zephys was anxious to see his comrades again. "I want to cover as much ground as possible before nightfall."

"I'm sorry…" I breathed, tired from running after him. "You're just moving so fast!"

"Keep your hood up, too," he cautioned me. "We don't want anyone to think you look weak from your injury. That can leave us susceptible to more… bandit attacks."

"But you put those men in their places so easily back by the mountains!" I tried to smile encouragingly. _Why was he suddenly worried about it?_ I sighed and said, "You can just handle them like you did before."

He stopped so suddenly that I bumped into him.

"Ow…" I moaned as my head hit his back.

Zephys remained silent.

"Zephys?" I whispered, trying to look at his face.

"I don't enjoy taking anyone's life," he growled, turning to glare at me. I flinched at his cruel gaze as they pierced into my eyes. "How narrow-minded of you to say such a thing."

"I…" I was at a loss of words. I had expected that it didn't bother him to take out those men back on our way to the City of Kadri. I walked silently, ashamed of what I had said. Zephys had looked at me with such cold eyes I couldn't help but shiver. Now, I was too scared to say anything again because of the new fear of retribution.

Hours of silence passed and soon, the sun was falling below the horizon. It was getting really dark, and I started to worry. How did he plan on setting everything up if it was pitch black?

"There's a cave up ahead," Zephys's voice made me jump. "We can sleep there so we don't need to waste time setting up the tent." At this point, I wasn't even surprised he could answer my question without me even asking it.

I nodded and after a couple minutes, he led me into a small cave. He took out the bedding supplies from his large bag and laid them out on the rocky ground. I stood silently while he quickly gathered materials and lit a small fire. Once the fire was strong, I sat on my bed, staring into the flames. They danced around then floated towards the ceiling. On the other side of the fire, I saw Zephys prepare himself for sleep. He turned his back to me.

"I-I'm sorry…" I finally said. My words had been tugging at my heart for a while now. "About what I said…"

"Go to sleep," he muttered back.

I sighed, staring at the back of his head through the dying flames.

A few weeks passed, the same routine every day. We would walk for most of the day and then set up camp for the night wherever seemed safe. Zephys often complained that we would have already arrived at the base if I didn't walk so slowly. My head still bore the scare from my fall, and my wrist was still wrapped tightly. The pain was significantly less, however, and my wrist was no longer in a sling around my neck. As more days passed, I become more and more impatient. I wanted to see Kayif and the others again. Moreover, I wanted to talk to someone who wouldn't instantly snap back at me…

As we walked along a dirt path, I heard the sound of horse hooves coming towards us. When I looked, a young man with dirty blonde hair tied back into a ponytail was riding in our direction on a stunning brown horse. I couldn't help but stare at him as he slowed to a trot next to us. His pleasant green eyes looked Zephys and me over and then his gaze locked on me. He had extremely well defined features; I was almost stunned by his beauty.

"Milady," he said and nodded his head to me respectfully. "Are you lost?" He flashed me a playful smile.

My cheeks turned red and I held a hand to my face, keeping the hood of the cape up. "N-no," I stammered. "We're just on our way to—"

"To Hamsen." Zephys interrupted, taking a step towards me.

"That's quite a long walk for a woman so delicate as yourself. More than a day's journey." The man dismounted from his horse and walked closer to me. "You are very beautiful, won't you show me your face?" He reached out to touch the hood of my cape, but I stepped back. The man chuckled and eyed me admiringly. "I would love to offer you a ride to town. It would be an honor to help out such a lovely woman."

"Oh, I—" The deal sounded enticing, my feet were killing me. But Zephys cut me off.

"We'll be alright, thank you."

"Please." The man's eyes were soft, staring into my own. "Let me assist you."

"Thank you for your kindness," I tried to say as politely as possible. "But we're okay."

"At least tell me your name, sweetheart." The man extended his hand to grasp mine.

"Luna."

I noticed Zephys flinch slightly.

"Luna…" the man said warmly. "Such a beautiful name." He brought my hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it softly. I felt my heart skip a beat. His eyes drifted to the pendant around my neck and then met mine again. "You are so divine," he murmured amiably. "Are you sure you don't want a ride to Hamsen?"

"It's quite alright." I looked over at Zephys.

"That's a shame," he sighed. "I was hoping you would come willingly." He pulled hard on my wrist and held me against his body. A knife flashed underneath my throat.

My eyes widened with fear, and I frantically looked to Zephys for help.

"Luna!" Zephys took a step forward, drawing his sword.

"Stop!" the man growled. "If you come any closer, I'll put this knife in her throat."

Zephys froze, staring at me.

"Now put down your sword," the man said slowly. "And no one will get hurt."

Zephys blinked and slowly placed his sword on the ground. He maintained his eye contact with me, making sure I was okay.

"Now, Luna," the man murmured in my ear. "Get on the horse."

I stood still, refusing to move, only to gasp as I felt the knife break my skin slightly.

"Don't hurt her!" Zephys spat furiously.

"Zephys…!" I winced, my eyes watering.

His eyes were pained. Then, suddenly, he looked like he came up with an idea. He placed his hand on his hip, and then looked down at my own.

_The knife!_ I remembered instantly, _He had given me a knife a while back for my own protection._ I used my uninjured arm to carefully reach to grab the hilt of the blade. With as much speed as possible, I slid the knife out of my belt and jabbed it into the man's thigh.

"Agh!" The man cried out in pain, and his grip loosened enough for me to wiggle free.

Zephys bent down and grabbed his sword from the ground. He charged at the man and they met blades. "Who are you?" He shouted at him.

The man twitched a smile and pushed back at Zephys, who stumbled backwards. The man drew his longsword and dropped his knife to the ground. "You will not survive if you try to fight me, stupid boy."

"You barely seem a worthy enough opponent for myself." Zephys growled back. He regained his composure and charged at the man. They're swords danced about each other, the material ringing in the sky. The man slashed down at Zephys, who sidestepped and delivered a blow with his hilt to the attacker's wrist. The man snarled and was instantly back at Zephys. He darted swiftly side-to-side. Zephys's eyes tracked him easily, and he blocked a slice towards his leg.

My heartbeat quickened. Zephys was on the defensive now, and it worried me. The man began slamming more and more attempts on Zephys, driving him back against a tree. With swift movement, the man drove his other hand against Zephys's wielding hand harshly. Zephys cried out in pain and his sword was knocked out of his hand. It clanged against the ground, ringing through my ears like a sound of coming doom. The man drew back his sword to deliver a lethal blow to Zephys.

I inhaled sharply, fearing the worst, but Zephys kicked the man firmly on the thigh where I had stabbed him. He let out a groan and fell back to the ground. However, he was back on his feet again in an instant. Zephys bent down rapidly to pick up his katana again to face the man.

"Who are you?!" Zephys snarled, breathing heavily.

The man was silent. Then, he held his sword in both hands and charged at Zephys again. Zephys's eyes narrowed. The man swung his sword and Zephys just barely dodged it by stepping to the side. I held my breath as the man continued to take swings. With each swing, Zephys evaded them with grace by either twisting out of the way or bending down.

Eventually, I realized that he was just waiting for a moment of weakness in the man for him to strike him down. Finally, the man took a powerful swing upwards and Zephys seized the opportunity to deliver a deadly slice across the man's chest. He stumbled backwards, holding onto his torso, and fell to the ground. He winced at the pain.

"Damn you," the man said, looking up at Zephys. When he tried to stand, Zephys placed his foot on his chest, holding him down. The man turned his head to the side, reaching for his sword just inches away from his grasp. Noticing this, Zephys bent down and picked up the sword, pointing it at the man's throat. The man slumped back, defeated, but, when he looked at Zephys again, he seemed almost like he was admiring him. "What is your name?"

"I am Zephys," he leaned down and struck the man forcefully across the face with his fist. "Who are you and why are you trying to kill Luna?"

The man sat silently, blood trickling out of his nose from the blow Zephys had given him. His eyes flashed to me briefly. "I am Izoltz." He gazed back at Zephys, who still had his foot on the man's chest.

"Why are you after Luna?" Zephys asked again, moving the blade closer to Izoltz's throat.

He didn't respond.

"I'll spare your life if you give me the information I want."

Izoltz turned his head and spat out blood. He blinked and grinned at me. "I do not know anything."

Zephys bit his lip, upset about this response. He frowned and kept the sword in the same spot. "I know you know something."

Izoltz once again was silent.

"Please," I spoke up. "Why are people trying to kill me?"

"I told you I don't know!" Izoltz snarled, "I was just hired to bring you to a cottage in the Central Empire and, if you wouldn't come willingly, to kill you and bring your body."

"Who hired you?!" Zephys roared.

"I don't know his name," Izoltz sighed. "In my line of work, names are just a liability. I was just told that it was a high ranking official and that I had to get the job done."

Zephys withdrew his sword and stepped off Izoltz.

Moaning, Izoltz sat up slowly, blood still falling heavily from his wound.

"Let's go, Luna," Zephys muttered to me, sheathing his katana, as well as Izoltz's.

"But if we leave him here," I said, looking back at Izoltz, "he'll die."

"He just admitted to planning to kill you!" Zephys sighed, "I could kill him now if that would make you happier."

"I—" I cut myself short, not knowing how to respond. If we helped this man, he could come back for us again. "We can't just leave him here to die alone." I turned around and walked to Izoltz, lowering myself to my knees beside him.

He looked up at me. "What… what are you doing?" he asked, confused by my return.

"Treating your wounds," I said, not making eye contact with him. I grabbed his arms and moved them from his bloody chest. My stomach tightened when I saw the cut up close. Although it was disturbing, I turned to Zephys, holding out my hand impatiently. "Give me the supply bag." When he handed it to me, I took out gauze we had bought and a canister filled with water. I removed the cap of the canister and poured the water onto the wound.

"Ah…" Izoltz cringed at the pain, turning away slightly.

"I'm just cleaning it out," I said reassuringly. "Stop moving or you'll make it worse." Next, I firmly wrapped the gauze around his chest, pulling it tight to apply pressure and stop the bleeding. My hand moved quickly and efficiently. I must have been taught in the past how to do this but I couldn't remember when. I treated the stab wound in his leg as well, applying all the same treatments. Once I finished, I helped Izoltz sit up and then I stood up and joined Zephys at his side.

"Can we go now?" he grumbled, annoyed.

"Yes." I looked at Izoltz and then turned to walk off.

"…Thank you." Izoltz's voice surprised me. "You truly have a heart of gold, Luna."

I stopped in my tracks, taking in his words. "Get well, Izoltz," I murmured, and then continued to walk away with Zephys, leaving Izoltz with his horse.

* * *

**Next chapter is probably my favorite :)**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

**Lighting the Sky**

A few hours had passed since the encounter with Izoltz. I knew Zephys wasn't happy that I had helped Izoltz with his injuries, but, at this point, I didn't care anymore.

"Zephys?" I said, looking over at him.

"What?" Zephys's tone was kind of rude.

"What is the Central Empire?"

"They're under control of Draehkim," He said, running his fingers through his hair.

"So do you think that—?"

"The only reasonable explanation is that Draehkim hired Izoltz." He answered my question before I even finished saying it. He looked worried, but I decided against saying anything else.

We walked in silence for a while, and I was trying to think of what to say. I had to choose my words carefully with Zephys because, depending on his mood, he could lash out at me. I've spent the most time with him out of all of the men at Camp Jade, yet I feel like I know him the least. I had no idea where he was even from.

The people who followed Kayif all came from different parts of the continent, trained especially for protecting their land. Kayif told me all about it one night by the bonfire and, since then, I'd become a lot more informed about the world I was living in. He spent so much time worrying about helping me adjust, even though he had plenty of other issues to occupy his time. He told that he was from Corinth, the nation at the center of the continent, where the most important nobles met and spoke about foreign affairs.

Areck and Heroth offered up that they were both from Deward Village, which was the central living district in the North Moon Nation. However, Heroth was the son of a man from the North Moon Nation and a woman from Terrax, which was east of the North Moon Nation, and that was why he had such a strange hair color. There were two other nations besides Corinth, the North Moon Nation, and Terrax: Farstar Nation and Jericho.

The Central Empire had never been mentioned around the campfire with Kayif or any of the others.

"I thought there were only five nations," I murmured shortly after.

"The Central Empire isn't a nation," he responded sourly.

"But I thought—"

"Draehkim formed an uprising that has escalated out of control." Zephys was beginning to get upset. "They've been conquering parts of the Farstar Nation and Jericho, calling it the 'Central Empire'. It's completely idiotic."

"I see," I said thinking about Kayif. _I wonder why Kayif never told me about the Central Empire,_ I thought, _maybe it would just upset him like it did with Zephys just now_. Although Zephys seemed a little irritated from the mention of the Central Empire, I had a new confidence to ask him questions for some reason. I searched my mind, picking the words carefully, "Where are you from?"

"What?" Zephys looked at me, surprised.

"Like, what nation?" I asked. "Heroth and Areck said they were from the North Moon Nation and Kayif said he's from Corinth." I smiled and gazed at him, waiting for his answer.

"I…" Zephys trailed off, looking elsewhere. He had a distressed look on his face. "We need to find a cave to make camp in."

"Why can't we just set up a tent?" We had set up camp in tents plenty of times before, so I was confused why today was different.

"Look at the sky." His eyes flashed upwards.

I looked up as well, examining the gray clouds that loomed over us.

"It's going to rain." He frowned and his pace quickened.

"But the tents protect us from the—"

"Let's just find a cave," Zephys said forcefully, locking his gaze on mine. "Okay?"

"O-okay…" I sighed and looked away. I could tell he wasn't in the mood for me to continue talking.

A couple hours passed and the sun was almost below the horizon. I could see Zephys's breathing increase. His pupils were large and he was searching around anxiously for a cave. Finally, he let out a sigh. It was starting to get too late and it didn't seem like we were going to find a cave any time soon. If we didn't set up camp now, it would be too dark to get anything done. Zephys reached for the bag and started to unpack the tent. I noticed that his hands were shaking slightly as he set everything up.

"Are you okay?" I looked at him worriedly. I had never seen him act like this before.

"How about you do something useful for once and help me set up camp?" He lashed back at me, causing me to flinch.

I nodded, scared of what would happen if I said no.

In a few minutes, the tent was up and I was lying on my bed. I could hear the pitter patter of the rain as it hit against the roof. I sighed and smelled the wet smell that comes with rain. For some reason, I felt an urge to go outside and let the rain fall on me. I knew it would upset Zephys, but I got up anyway.

"Where are you going?!" Zephys called after me.

"Outside."

"But it's raining." He sat up and looked at me from his bed.

"I know," I gripped the tent curtain and let his cape fall from my shoulders. "I want to go stand in it."

Zephys raised his eyebrows judgingly, but then reached over to grab his cape off the ground.

I pulled back the curtain of the tent and, suddenly, there was a flash of light in the sky. It caused the entire heavens to glow brilliantly, exposing all the shapes the clouds had formed in the dark. It was followed by a loud boom, which made me sigh and stay in the tent. I reached out my hand and let the water droplets fall on my palm. I watched as they landed and dripped off the sides. It felt refreshing, but I pulled my hand in and twisted around to return to my bed.

When I looked back, Zephys had curled into a ball on his bed. Not thinking anything of it, I sprawled out on my bed. After a couple seconds, I spun around onto my other side and looked over at Zephys. Another boom sounded and I saw him flinch.

_Is he scared of the thunder?_ I thought, staring at the back of his head. I could tell his body was shaking. _No, that's impossible, _I responded to myself in my head, _Zephys would never be afraid of that._ He still continued to quiver on his bed, so I spoke.

"Zephys?" I whispered.

He didn't respond. Another crack of thunder sounded and I heard the sound of a tree tumbling to the ground far off. During this, Zephys shook ferociously and I saw his arms slide around himself tightly.

Taking a deep breath, I stood up from my bed and walked over to his. I wasn't sure what I was doing, but my body was leading me there for some reason. I clenched my sun pendant fiercely in my hand, as if it could give me the self-assurance I needed. Heart pounding, I rested a hand on his arm. At my touch, he twitched noticeably, but he didn't look at me.

"It's okay," I murmured. I rubbed his arm slowly with my hand and sat down next to him on his bed. He still remained facing the wall, but I could see that his eyes were squeezed shut. I moved and placed my hand over his, which was still shaking. I tried to calm myself down, worried that Zephys could hear my heart racing.

Another thunder clapped and I squeezed Zephys's hand tightly when he flinched again.

"You're safe here." I reached my other hand over and held onto Zephys's large hand with both of mine. His breathing began to slow down and I continued to whisper comforting words to him. Finally, I started to pull away, but he, in turn, grabbed onto my wrist.

"Don't leave." He looked at me. His eyes were wide with fear, just like an innocent child. They looked damp, too, as if he was about to cry. "Please… stay here." His eyes were so incredible.

I met his gaze and my heart melted. "Okay." I lay myself down next to him. I began to move my arms around him, but hesitated. Eventually, I muscled up the courage to act. I held my breath, wrapping my arms around him and pressing myself against him. My heartbeat quickened again.

To my shock, Zephys flipped his body around and put his head on my chest. He didn't get angry or snap at me, and I felt my face go red. His breath tickled between my breasts, causing a strange feeling to pulse through my body. I began to stroke his hair with my hand, running my fingers through it. I heard Zephys sigh softly, making my heart hammer even more. His large arms wrapped around my waist and lower back.

"I can feel your heartbeat." His words were barely audible.

Embarrassed, I moved away slightly, and said, "I'm sorry, I just—"

"Shh…" Zephys pulled me back towards him, "It's nice…"

Another flash of light illuminated the tent slightly, followed up quickly by a deafening boom. Zephys grabbed onto the cloth on my back tightly with his hands and tensed.

"It's not going to hurt you." I rested my chin on his head and closed my eyes. His hair felt so soft as it intertwined in my fingers. I had never held someone in my arms like this before. Besides the first night Zephys and I had spent together after we fled Camp Jade, we had not slept within a few feet of one another.

The thunder was dormant for a while, and Zephys was the one to break the silence. "I don't know where I'm from."

"What?" I was caught off guard by his voice.

"The professor at the training academy… found me…" He voice faltered slightly. "…with my twin brother. He didn't make it through the storm though." I could barely hear him, his voice trembling now. "We had been abandoned. I spent my years growing up in the academy between Corinth, the North Moon Nation, and Terrax." He breathed in shakily, holding back what I assumed were tears.

I pulled him in tighter to me, holding his head with my hands. I didn't think there was anything I needed to say except that. The storms must bring back unconscious memories of the night he lost his brother. Zephys had become much more relaxed, stretching his legs out along the bed comfortably. Soon, his breathing slowed, and it seemed that Zephys had fallen asleep. I kissed the top of his head gently. I couldn't help but think about all the nights that he spent alone, terrified of the storms. My heart ached for him, but everything just seemed right holding him in my arms. I continued to stroke his hair long after he had gone to sleep.

Every once in a while, Zephys would mumble in his sleep and move a little bit, but his arms stayed around me. Each time his head moved, his hair would whisk across my chest and send a sensation through me.

My eyelids grew heavy, and, eventually, they closed completely.


	10. Chapter 10

**As the chapters go on, we get closer and closer to _the _chapter... :)))**

* * *

Chapter 10

**Oceanside**

"Luna."

My eyes opened slowly, still heavy from sleep. Then, they closed again.

"Luna, wake up." A hand grabbed my arm and shook me harshly.

I opened my eyes and Zephys was kneeling in front of me. He had a stern look on his face, and his eyes were narrowed somewhat irritably. I smiled weakly at him. "Let me sleep a little longer…" I murmured drowsily before starting to close my eyes again.

"No," Zephys said a little louder than before. "We have to get going. If we leave now, we'll make it there before sunset."

At his words, I sat up quickly, suddenly feeling wide-awake. I was excited to see Kayif and the others again. It had only been two months since we had fled from Camp Jade, but it seemed like an eternity ago. I was looking forward to seeing how they were and what information they had found out. I immediately stepped off the bed and helped to clean up the campsite. I must have been rushing because Zephys spoke up.

"Are you anxious to see them?" He said stiffly.

I stared at him, suddenly remembering everything that happened last night. If he hasn't said anything, did that mean he didn't want to talk about it? He hasn't acted any differently, so it clearly must have not meant anything to him. I felt an odd tug at my heart. _Why does this bother me?_ I lowered my eyes sadly. I couldn't muscle up the courage to say anything, especially because Zephys was so difficult to have an emotional conversation with. In the end, I said, "I just… miss them."

"Well." He shrugged. "I'm glad you're making yourself useful."

Within a half hour, the camp was cleaned up and we had begun walking again. Zephys's pace was fast, as usual. I kept falling behind, still not completely used to traveling quickly in a crowded forest. The roots still provided easy ways for me to stumble. I had to stare at my feet while I walked, watching out for various pieces of nature that could cause me trouble.

"Hurry up." Zephys called back to me, irritated.

I frowned. His distance from me made my chest hurt. The side of him that I had seen yesterday was gone. It seemed like a dream at this point. When I looked at Zephys, I couldn't picture the innocent eyes I had seen last night. Tears stung at the corners of my eyes. _Why am I upset?_ I clenched my fists in anger. _I should have expected this reaction. It's stupid for thinking anything else of it_.

We walked for almost half the day, quiet as usual. Finally, Zephys broke the silence.

"Are you okay?" He stopped and waited for me to catch up to him.

His question caught me by surprise, so I didn't have an answer in mind. "I… I'm fine." I tried not to sound angry, but that's how it came out.

Zephys grabbed onto my arm and tried to look at me, but I avoided his gaze and shook off his hand. I quickened my pace and walked in front of him, not looking back at him to see his reaction.

"Luna…" I heard him whispered sadly behind me. "What's wrong?" His footsteps grew louder as the approached me.

_What's wrong? _I thought angrily in my head. _What's wrong is that every time I think we're getting close, you just sink back to the way things were before._ I couldn't manage to get those words out. I knew he didn't want to hear them, so I ignored his question and kept looking at the ground in front of me.

"Luna." Zephys's voice had a touch of petulance that only fueled my anger more. I felt his fingers begin to touch my arm again, so I wrenched it away.

"Can we just get there as quickly as possible?" I snapped back, surprised by the force of my words. I moved my arm away from him, holding my hands in front of me as I walked. I wasn't going to tell him any lies about how I was feeling, and I knew that he wouldn't like the truth, so it was just best to say nothing.

Zephys sighed and didn't say another word. It remained this way for the rest of our trek to the sea.

Finally, we reached the top of a hill and a vast ocean spread out in front of me. The sun reflected off of the waves, causing them to sparkle. I couldn't help but stare in awe as I looked at the beach for the first time. If I had been there during my past, I definitely didn't remember it.

Near the beach lay a small town. The smell of the sea filled my nose and I felt happy. I had maintained my bad mood for most of the day, but it was hard to stay upset now. The breeze whipped my hair back into the air and my mouth opened in a wide smile across my face. Not waiting for Zephys, I ran down the hill, kicking off my sandals as I reached the sand. I was so soft against my bare feet. I kept jogging until I neared the water's edge, and then I paused, staring at the waves as they approached the shore and retreated back into the ocean.

"Luna?!" I heard a voice call me, and I turned and saw Areck running towards me. He had taken off his shirt and I couldn't help but goggle at his amazing physique. The closer he came, the more scars I noticed along his body. The sea water glistened and dripped off his body as he bounced in a run.

"Areck!" I cried out happily, thrilled to see him again.

Areck finally reached me and grabbed me around the waist, hoisting me into the air. I screamed gleefully as he spun me around. He brought me down and drew me to him in an embrace. His bare skin pressed against me and I pushed him away, slightly embarrassed. My dress became slightly damp from the transfer of water from his chest.

"Control yourself." I teased him. Suddenly, a wave hit my ankles, causing me to jump.

Areck laughed and looked at me, "You scared of the water?" He said playfully.

"I've never seen the ocean before," I looked out at its vast expansion.

"What?!" Areck gasped behind me.

"Yeah." I brought a hand to my cheek, trying to hide the fact it was turning red.

"Let's go swimming!" He shouted happily. Suddenly, he ran from behind me and I looked away immediately, my face turning bright red. He had stripped off his pants and then dove into the water. His head popped up farther out into the ocean and looked over at me, "Come on, Luna!"

I hesitated. Even though it was beautiful, I was scared of the ominous water that spanned in front of me. I heard the sound of splashing and, soon, Areck was crawling towards me in the water, only his head poking above the surface.

"P-Please put some clothes on!" I stammered, still trying to avoid looking at him.

"It's so refreshing," he said, trying to get me to come in.

"I should probably go see Kayif," I said, beginning to turn away. "It's not fair to keep him waiting for me."

"Okay…" Areck sighed sadly.

I took one step and then hands grabbed my hips again. I was lifted into the air and brought back towards the water. "Areck!" I shrieked and, instantly, my head fell below the surface. Running out of air, I returned to the top and stared at Areck with feigned anger. "How rude."

"Take off your dress," Areck said casually. "It's just gonna make it harder to stay afloat."

My face turned bright red and I punched Areck playfully on the shoulder.

"You look so adorable when you're embarrassed." Areck murmured, reaching out to push back some of my wet hair. He smiled warmly and added, "I want to kiss you."

My eyes widened at his words and I was at a loss of words. I averted my eyes, trying to think of what to say. Luckily, I was saved by a familiar, crabby voice.

"Luna!" It was Zephys calling angrily from the beach. "What are you doing?!"

"Well, I—"

"Oh, come off it," Areck yelled back at him, waving his hand dismissively. "We're just having some fun."

"I should go," I said, hastily making my way back to the beach.

Areck sighed and remained in the water behind me.

When I reached the shoreline, Zephys stormed towards me and grabbed my arm angrily.

"Ow!" I frowned, glaring at Zephys. "Stop it!"

His eyes widened and he let go of my arm. His cheeks turned a little pink and he looked away. "Let's go find Kayif."

As we walked, I tried to squeeze out the water from my dress.

Zephys noticed and growled, "Areck is such an immature little—"

"He was just having fun," I cut in crossly. "It was nice having someone try to make me happy." I didn't look at Zephys, secretly hoping that the words would hurt him. I knew I was being rude, but I wasn't planning on apologizing any time soon.

We reached town and Zephys led me into the largest building at the center. I shook up my hair, trying to make it more presentable, and I walked in. A great hall showed in front of me, with many doors on both sides of the room. In the middle was a grand staircase. I walked up them, hoping this was the right way. I drew back the double door entrance and entered.

"Luna?" I heard I voice say. When I looked up, it was Kayif. He smiled brilliantly and strolled towards me. He pulled me into an embrace, and then pushed away and said, "Why are you wet?"

I gasped, embarrassed. I put my hands over my face to hide my shame and said, "Areck pushed me into the ocean when he saw me."

Kayif let out a loud laugh and hugged me again. His warmth flooded over me and he murmured in my ear, "I have to admit, I missed having you around."

I smiled, so happy to be back.

"Hello, Kayif." Zephys's voice called from behind me.

Kayif looked behind me and yelled, "Zephys! I'm glad you made it safely." He let me go after that and went over to give Zephys a handshake. They came over to me together and Kayif said happily, "Let's celebrate your arrival with a great dinner!" Before I had the chance to answer, he added, "Don't worry about doing any cooking, Luna. We have a lot of maids here that take care of all those things now. Just worry about getting comfortable and accustomed to your new home. We can talk more later. I'm sure Heroth will show you to your room. He'll be happy to see you, too… Although I would love to be able to keep you here for myself, I, unfortunately, have some business to attend to."

With that, I walked out of the room with Zephys. My mood had lifted noticeably since before and I wore a smile on my face as we moved through the halls again. As I stepped down the stairs, I noticed a familiar head of white hair at the bottom of the set of steps.

"Heroth!" I called out.

He looked over at me and grinned, "Well, look who's finally here!" He waved and met Zephys and me at the middle of the staircase, squeezing both of us in a hug. He stepped back and looked both of us over, "It's great to have you both back. Luna." He gazed at me. "Why are you soaked?"

"Areck—"

"Ah, makes sense." Heroth laughed loudly and continued, "Let me show you your new room!" He turned to walk away and I followed after him.

Zephys took a step in our direction and I turned and looked him in the eyes.

"You don't need to come with us," I said coolly. "I'm sure you've seen enough of me." I tried to say it teasingly so Heroth wouldn't get suspicious.

Zephys nodded slowly and walked to a room on the opposite side of the hall.

Heroth unlocked the door in front of me and opened it wide. I tried to control my amazement when I looked at the size of my room. A queen size bed was at the center of my room, with a private restroom off to the side as well. There was a large dresser to the left of the bed and the colors around the room were beautiful.

"Wow…" I sighed.

"A lot different from the tents at Camp Jade, hm?" Heroth laughed softly, noticing my reaction. He looked at the windows, predicting the time. "You have about an hour until dinner is ready. You're probably tired from your journey with cranky."

I nodded, suddenly realizing how exhausted I actually was. I smiled sweetly at Heroth and bowed, walking into the room and closing the door behind me. Sighing tiredly, I slipped out of my dress and stripped to my underwear. I flopped down onto the bed and was impressed by how soft the mattress was. It had been a while since I had slept in a place so comfortable. I turned over in my bed and looked at the other side, half expecting to see Zephys lying there, but the bed was empty. I sighed, feeling lonely. Soon enough, the work from the day caught up to me and I fell asleep, clutching the spare pillow in my arms.


End file.
